I Know Who You Are
by marauder3lives
Summary: Two girls from the same manor are Chosen on the same night. The problem is, one's the lord's daughter, and the other takes care of the pigs.
1. Sizory

Disclaimer: I don't own Mercedes Lackey. That's illegal. Nor do I own what she owns.

A/N: This is the revised version. I must admit, it's much better.

**Ch 1- Sizory**

I woke up this morning, and was perfectly happy- until I remembered it was my brother's birthday. Nobody _ever _pays attention to me on Edward's birthday, except to tell me to do something. I wore my blue dress- it's one of my least nice ones- because I guessed I'd be doing all sorts of jobs for my mother. I was right. I got set to hanging the swathes of fabric that served as bunting, while Mother and her ladies tied bunches of ribbons. The ladies' daughters were also hanging bunting, but they didn't talk to me. That was ok, but when they left without telling me, leaving me still hanging bunting by myself, I dug myself into an imaginary hole. I stayed that way pretty much all day- they came back to tie the ribbons to the bunting, and left me alone again. The hole became steadily deeper. Then I arranged _more_ fabric on the high table in the great hall. For this one special occasion, my brother gets to sit in the middle, where my father usually sits. I kept on with the job until my mother came up to me and said

"Sizory! What are you _doing?_ That work is for serving girls! You shouldn't be here!" She ignored my feeble protest that she'd set me to this task in the first place. "We're out of red ribbons, Sizory, you can go get some more from Master Perlin in town. I hate having to send you to a common store owner, but... everything _must _be absolutely perfect for dear Edward's birthday, and we just need more ribbons!" So out I went into the rain, equipped with some silver for Master Perlin. It really isn't that far to the town, but I got sopping wet anyway. And then Master Perlin treated me like royalty when I was looking and scum when he thought I wasn't. I didn't think that many people hated my family like that. _I_ thought I treated him well enough. I walked back up the hill to the manor with my hands full of red ribbons. I reached the gate, and found the girl who watches the pigs trying to herd them out. They have a pen outside the manor grounds. Anyway, a loose dog started nipping at the pigs' heels. This provoked a stampede. Mud, pigs, and girls were everywhere. And the ribbons, of course.

"The ribbons! Oh!" I said indignantly. Mother said I should make sure to impress my status upon those lower than I am- so, here goes. "Look what you've done! Don't _ever_ get near me again!" I suppose that would satisfy Mother, but it doesn't really feel comfortable. Somehow I feel like I should say... something else.

"Of course, milady. So sorry, milady," she murmured, head bowed. Apparently my outburst had its intended effect. She began to pick up the ribbons. She wiped them off, and offered them to me.

"Apology accepted." I took the ribbons from her, and proceeded up to the manor. Mother nearly had a fit when I arrived.

"Look at you, Sizory! You're _filthy_! Go upstairs and change this minute! I won't have my daughter looking like a beggar on my son's birthday!"

"Yes, mother," I said deferentially. Of course. My brother, Edward, takes precedence, no matter what. He _is_ the heir, after all. Even if he's only six. I _hate_ how people treat me when I'm around him! Just because I'm a girl doesn't mean I can't do anything! There are some things I'd never _want_ to do, but... it's so unfair!

I changed, and returned to the great hall for the celebration. The food was good, but I couldn't eat any. I was still thinking about the pig girl. The way she'd acted- it was like Master Perlin. I don't _like_ being hated, but there's nothing I can do about it. Besides, I never enjoy Edward's birthday feast. I always feel like I've become invisible.

After the feast, I wandered upstairs to my room, depressed. Not only had it rained, I'd run into the pig girl, which was _still_ confusing me, and my thirteenth birthday, my coming-of-age birthday, would fall just when everyone was tired from my brother's celebration. I wouldn't get a party _half_ the size of his. I tried to lose myself in a book, but it didn't work. I glanced out the window, and saw a white blob approaching the manor. Who could be coming who wasn't here already? (The whole family shows up for Edward's birthday, every single year. Of course, they're gone by the time mine comes around.) The blob was moving at about horse-speed. My family's not rich enough that you can see details out of our glass- it's bubbly. We're lords of a fiefdom under Lord Ashkevron. Wait a minute- a _white_ horse? What was a Herald doing all the way up here? One had come through just last week! I raced downstairs, problems forgotten in my eagerness to hear the news. I emerged into the courtyard, and saw the Companion standing there. The Herald was not to be seen, though. She approached me, and I had time for the thought --What? She's not Choosing?-- before I fell into the blue eyes.

_:I am Mirell, and I Choose you, Sizory.: _I felt- loved. For once, I mattered to someone. _Really_ mattered. A sapphire sea of love, comfort, and warmth enveloped me. Amazing. My arms found their way around her neck, and I blissfully ignored the courtyard around me for an irrelevant period of time.

_:Come on, Chosen, let's head for Haven.:_ Mirell Mindspoke me. _:I'm anxious to show you off!:_

"If either of us is showing the other off, I'm not the one worth looking at!" I replied as the road blurred under Mirell's silver hooves.


	2. Kyla

**Ch. 2- Kyla**

Whoever let out that dog _really_ needs to be punished. The stupid animal made the pigs fly into that snobby daughter of Lord Wehan. She was strutting in, nose as high as you please, hands full of ribbons, and all of us had a head-on collision. I got muddy, which is only really a bad thing because mud includes water. My shirt and trews were brown already. That snob Sizory was of course indignant that her pretty blue dress was filthy. Ha. I still can't believe what she said to me.

"The ribbons! Oh! Look what you've done! Don't ever get near me again!" As if it was _my_ fault the dumb dog got out. However, I knew the only way to appease her and get her to leave was to be extremely servile:

"Of course, milady. So sorry, milady," I said humbly. For good measure, I picked up the damn ribbons.

"Apology accepted," the 'lady' replied to my statement. Perfect. She'd taken the bait, and would leave me alone. Not that I really _hate_ her, but anyone so treated can be expected to react indignantly, right? I'm only human, after all.

I finally got the pigs rounded up, even Stripe, who's a troublemaker and heads for the garden every time we go _anywhere_. We moved off to the pen near the inn, where the pigs spend most of their time. They'd been inside the grounds in the first place because the cook wanted a couple for the dinner they were having tonight. Celebration, I guess. I hope Sizory ruins another dress- this time with pork gravy. The cook wanted to pick out the roasts-to-be himself, not trusting the judgment of the owner. If it were me, I wouldn't trust the owner's judgment either.

After feeding the pigs, I trudged into the inn for my own food. It's my only wage- supposedly I get lodging, too, but really I just sleep with the pigs. It _is_ more than I'd get as an orphan anywhere else, though, as the innkeeper is _constantly_ reminding me. After a measly dinner of old bread and warm cheese, I headed back to the pigpen for the night. That was when things got interesting.

I heard a commotion going by, and paused to look. A flash of white shot by, and it took a moment for the meaning to sink in. Companions! Well, they couldn't have business with me, so I trudged on to the pigpen. As I approached, I was startled to see white among the brown pigs. What was a Companion doing _here_? I moved towards him, planning to shoo him off. Instead, he nudged me, and I ended up looking into those sapphire eyes.

_:Hello, Kyla,:_ he spoke into my head. _:I am Faroc, and I Choose you.: _I was falling through a sea of sapphire, and all troubles about Sizory and the cold bed I had to look forward to vanished. Someone needed me, and I needed him right back. I was enveloped in warmth, and it felt _good._

I got a mental picture of the two of us on the road.

"You want to leave?" I asked. Faroc nodded, which completely destroyed any lingering impressions of him as a horse. "Let's go!"


End file.
